The present invention relates to a wire feeding guide for use in guiding wires through a hole in an electrical box and into a conduit extending from the electrical box. More particularly it relates to a wire feeding guide which may be easily attached to an electrical box for guiding one or more wires into a conduit secured over a hole in an electrical box and extending from the electrical box.
To provide for electrical service in a building, various types of electrical boxes are installed in the walls, ceiling or floor of buildings. Switch or outlet boxes are installed where switches or outlets are desired. Junction boxes are installed where a plurality of wires are to be connected to each other. Electrical boxes are typically of a square, rectangular, or round shape, with a back, sidewalls and an open front. Holes are provided in the walls and back of electrical boxes to receive wires or cables which are typically connected in the electrical box to an electrical service device such as a switch, outlet, or lighting fixture, or to each other. Before a wire or cable is passed through a hole in an electrical box, a fitting may be mounted in the hole to protect the wire or cable from the sharp edges of the hole. The fitting or coupling may also be used to secure a conduit, that is a pipe, to the electrical box, such that wires passed through the hole may be run through the conduit.
When it is necessary to pull wire through a hole in an electrical box, a coil of wire is placed adjacent to the electrical box, with the wire to be pulled through the hole being supplied from the coil of wire. The wire to be pulled from the coil must be properly aligned with the hole to permit it to be pulled from the coil. If two or more people are working together to install the electrical service, one person can pull the wire, while the other one feeds the wire through the hole in the electrical box. However, if a person is working alone, it is difficult to both keep the wire in the proper position to be fed into the hole, and to also pull it from the hole. It might be possible to carefully position a coil or length of wire with respect to the hole, such that the wire would unwind from the coil directly into the hole. However, due to the small size of electrical boxes, it is most often not possible to position the coil to feed wire to a hole in an electrical box, without the wire rubbing on the edges of box surrounding the open front.
Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide a wire feeding guide which will permit a person working alone to pull wire or cable through a conduit secured over a hole in an electrical box. It would be even more advantageous to provide such a wire feeding guide which is readily attached to and removed from an electrical box, and which retains the wire while being pulled through the electrical box. Such a wire feeding guide would be attached to an electrical box, merely by being properly positioned on the box, without the need for adjusting any type of fastening device, such as threaded members or clamps.
It is an object of this invention to provide a wire feeding guide for feeding wire into an electrical box and through a hole in the electrical box from a source of wire as the wire is being pulled from a conduit connected to the hole. It is another object of this invention to provide a wire feeding guide for feeding wire into an electrical box and through a hole in the electrical box from a source of wire as the wire is being pulled from the box, and through a conduit connected to the hole by a person working alone. It is a further object of this invention to provide a wire feeding guide for feeding wire into a electrical box and through a hole in the electrical box, which is readily attached to and supported by the electrical box, and which is easily removed from the electrical box after use. It is a still further object of this invention to provide a wire feeding guide which is provided with a wire retainer having an opening therein, through which the wire may be readily inserted and removed, and which retains the wire while being fed over the wire feeding guide.
A wire feeding guide in accordance with this invention includes a trough-like member, a support arrangement for supporting the trough-like member on an electrical box, and a wire retention element for retaining a wire or wires on the trough-like member. The trough-like member is formed with an inlet end for receiving wire from a source, and an outlet end which is positioned to direct the wire to a desired hole in the electrical box. The trough-like member is supported on the electrical box in a position to readily receive wire from a source, and to direct it to a desired hole in the electrical box. The support member is secured to an electrical box by portions of the support member which engage a wall or walls of the electrical box surrounding the open front of the electrical box, a hole in the electrical box, or the outside walls of the electrical box. The trough-like member may be made of any material which may be formed to provide the desired trough shape. Similarly, the support arrangement may be made of any material which may be formed to provide the desired support structure, and which has sufficient strength to support the trough-like member when in use. In several preferred embodiments, the trough-like member is formed of plastic, and the support arrangement is formed of a rigid, but bendable metal wire. The wire retention element is also formed of a rigid, but bendable, metal wire, and may be formed as an extension of the same wire forming the support member. Various methods may be used to secure the trough-like member to the support arrangement. When the trough-like member is formed of plastic, and the support member of metal wire, the plastic trough-like member may be glued to the wire support member.